Google’s ambitious 80-acre “Downtown West” campus project has been put on hold indefinitely as the tech giant faces its most severe cost cuts in its history, leaving San Jose’s downtown area in limbo.
CNBC reports that as Google with its most severe cost cuts in history, the internet giant’s ambitious 80-acre “Downtown West” campus project has been put on indefinite hold, leaving San Jose’s downtown area in limbo.
The construction project, which was estimated to have an economic impact of around $19 billion, has been put on hold, and there has been no communication with the contractors about when it might resume. Due to non-disclosure agreements, insiders with knowledge of the situation asked to remain anonymous. They expressed concern that the project might not reach the scope promised in the initial master plan.
MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA Google HQ (Photo by Mason Trinca/Getty Images)
According to CNBC, Google reportedly dismantled its development team for the San Jose campus. LendLease, the project’s lead developer, also fired 67 workers earlier this year, among them several senior development managers and community engagement managers. Google also took down construction updates from the project’s website.
A LendLease spokesperson stated in an emailed response that the company remains “committed in the creation of thriving mixed-use communities in the Bay Area, including the Google developments,” and still has a “significant team to aid in delivering these communities.”
Google announced in January that it would eliminate 12,000 jobs, or about 6 percent of its workforce, in response to the worst performance of tech stocks since the 2008 financial crisis. The company is in a precarious position due to its commitment to the San Jose project, as the tech sector struggles to adjust to a post-coronavirus world that seems more hybrid and less focused on large campuses.
A Google spokesperson said in a statement, “We’re working to ensure our real estate investments match the future needs of our hybrid workforce, our business, and our communities. While we’re assessing how to best move forward with Downtown West, we’re still committed to San Jose for the long term and believe in the importance of the development.”
As a result of the site’s current construction standstill, San Jose must now fill a large portion of its downtown area. Numerous suppliers and contractors who were anticipating work have switched their attention to other projects while they wait to learn what will happen next.
The optimism that was present in San Jose less than two years ago, when California Governor Gavin Newsom and Google Senior Vice President Kent Walker attended an event there ahead of a council meeting that would decide whether the project was approved, stands in stark contrast to the current state of affairs. In addition to signing SB 7, Newsom used the occasion to highlight the state’s economic “comeback” from the coronavirus pandemic by citing Google’s proposed mega-campus and other housing and development projects currently under construction.
Read more at CNBC here.
Lucas Nolan is a reporter for Breitbart News covering issues of free speech and online censorship. Follow him on Twitter @LucasNolan